The debut season of The Ultimate Fighter (later designated The Ultimate Fighter 1) premiered on January 17, 2005. Sixteen mixed martial arts fighters (eight light heavyweights weighing from 186 to 205 lb and eight middleweights weighing from 171 to 185 lb) were invited to participate in the show where they resided together and trained in two separate teams coached by UFC light heavyweight fighters Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture. The teams competed in physical challenges, segments hosted by singer Willa Ford, to determine which had the right to pair one of their fighters against an opponent of their choice in the same weight class, with the loser being eliminated. The finale was broadcast live on April 9, 2005, where the two finalists in each weight class faced off for a contract with the UFC. It was the first live UFC broadcast on non-pay-per-view television, and it drew a very impressive 1.9 overall rating. The series was also broadcast in the UK in the spring of 2005 on Bravo. A 5-disc DVD set of "The Ultimate Fighter" was released on November 1, 2005. Cast Coaches Chuck Liddell, head coach of blue team Randy Couture, head coach of green team Marc Laimon, grappling coach Ganyao Fairtex, Muay Thai coach Peter Welch, boxing coach Fighters Listed as originally assigned. Light heavyweights Team Liddell: Bobby Southworth, Sam Hoger, Forrest Griffin, Alex Schoenauer Team Couture: Stephan Bonnar, Mike Swick, Lodune Sincaid, Jason Thacker Middleweights Team Liddell: Josh Koscheck, Diego Sanchez, Kenny Florian, Josh Rafferty Team Couture: Nathan Quarry, Chris Leben, Alex Karalexis, Chris Sanford Others Hosts: Dana White, Willa Ford Narrator: Mike Rowe Episodes Episode 1: "The Quest Begins" (original airdate: 17 January 2005) The 16 fighters are driven to the UFC Training Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, where they meet Willa Ford, Dana White, and the coaches, Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell. At the house, Chris Leben keeps on drinking heavily, and starts to make fun of Jason Thacker, and give people nicknames. At 2:00 am, while Thacker is in the shower, Leben decides to urinate on his teammate's pillow, without him noticing. The fighters are woken up at 5:00 am by Couture and Liddell, and the first day of training proves too much for almost half of the fighters. During the jiu jitsu training, Nate Quarry cuts himself on his chin after landing a takedown. After the second day of training, Thacker talks